20 Things James Doesn't Talk About
by watches foxes
Summary: This will be a set of 20 details of James's life that aren't public knowledge. As canon-compliant as possible with the occasional AU leaning. Some will be Rocketshippy, some will deal with the twerps. All will be 100 word drabbles.
1. Chapter 1

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** Welcome, welcome to 20 Things James Doesn't Talk About. It is kind of a companion piece to my earlier story 20 Things Jessie Doesn't Talk About, but that is not required reading. In this I'll be playing around with some things about James in drabble form. I will do my best to stay as close to canon and the established facts and characterization as possible, but please let me know if you think I've strayed too far. As per usual anything you recognize (characters, canon elements, etc) belongs to people who aren't me. Without further ado, please enjoy :)**_

_1. James's mother resents that he was not a girl._

James's mother had never kept her desire for a daughter—or her disdain that the only child she could have was a boy—a secret. While his father was perfectly pleased, she was devastated and tried, for a long time, to treat him as though he were the little girl she wanted; she'd call him "Jamie" and buy pretty pastel clothes and steer him towards such activities as poetry and ballet and gardening. She only stopped pretending when the engagement papers were signed and she could turn her attention toward Jessiebelle, the perfect young lady who was everything she'd always wanted.

_** Despite growing up filthy rich, James had a pretty depressing childhood. His material needs were always tended, but I get the impression his emotional needs were pretty much considered a non-issue. His parents are extremely self-absorbed and see their son as a tool for their own ends. The only thing that made sense after seeing how much they (his mother, in particular) adored Jessiebelle was that they, or at the VERY least James's mother wanted a daughter. It always made sense to me that perhaps this was why he was more prone to behaving in a more stereotypically feminine way.  
**_

_** Anyway I just wanna say that doing these for James has already proven to be more challenging than Jessie's was—the writers have paid a lot more attention to his backstory than theydid his partner's which means there is a little less creative freedom up to interpretation to knit the holes together into something that makes sense but on the flip side, I don't need to establish quite as much so this should be quite fun. **_

_**I hope you enjoyed it please review : )**_


	2. Chapter 2

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** Welcome to the second Thing James Doesn't Talk About. This one also deals with James's family and I like it a bit better than the first one. Enjoy.**_

_2. James is not especially proud of where his family money has come from._

As sole heir, James was required to learn the proud history of both of his parents' ancestry. James, a life-long Pokémon lover, was horrified to learn how their money was made. His father's family had built an empire around the illegal mining and distribution of rare elemental stones—made profitable partly by paying the police to look the other way and partly by sending pokémon and children into heinous and deadly conditions. His mother's grandfather had developed a steroid that exponentially increased a Pokémon's strength and stamina while significantly decreasing it's quality and duration of life—and sucessfully marketed it as candy.

_** James loves his Pokémon. I don't think he'd be too thrilled with the concept of using evolution stones or rare candies on them, because they are his friends and his babies (his words,there. Not mine.) And well, rich people are generally rich for a reason. This technically is exclusively head canon but I like the idea of James's family money tainted by Pokémon abuse. You may have noticed I don't like them very much...I hope you enjoyed this. I'd love a review, but no pressure. :D**_


	3. Chapter 3

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** Hi there and welcome to the third Thing James Doesn't Talk About. This one for the first time focuses on James's interactions with Jessie but if you don't want to see it as Rocketshippy that isn't mandatory. As always Pokémon is not mine. Enjoy!**_

_3. James occasionally plays up his cowardice because he loves the fear hugs and cuddles._

James has always been sensitive and affectionate. His parents are positive he got that from his f bleeding heart paternal grandparents but never paid it much mind. It didn't take James long to realize that some tiny part of Jessie (which she'd deny violently) liked providing physical comfort when others needed it, and that he liked it—a lot. He knew instinctively that he could never admit it to her—he'd never live it down. But she already knew he wore his fear on his sleeves and he had no problem embellishing it to get an extra cuddle every now and then.

_** James and Jessie don't seem too able to keep their hands off each other—at least in the earlier seasons of the anime. Maybe it's happening off-screen in Black and White but I always loved the (fandom named)"fear hugs". I miss them, not gonna lie. And I always thought that they both got something out of it but in my head James really likes the physical contact. Romantic or not he's always clinging to her. Anyway I hope you enjoyed, thanks for reading and thanks in advance for reviewing :D**_


	4. Chapter 4

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** Hey all! Sorry it's been so long since my last update; I got bit badly by the Legend of Korra muse. I plan to update this a lot more frequently from now on. Anyway this one focuses on James's bonding with his Pokemon.**_

_4. James does not have a favorite Pokémon._

Since James was an infant he's been very fond of Pokémon. He's bonded strongly with every one he's owned (the obvious exception being Magikarp); He's had Growlie the longest, Koffing was like a brother to him, and he'd always dreamed of having a Chimeco. But he's never preferred one species over the rest. He doesn't even have a favorite type of Pokémon—he loves all 17 types equally. But even Jessie, who is not the most observant trainer in history, has noticed that his grass types tend to respond to his affection with much more enthusiasm than the other types do.

_** James bonds really really well with all his Pokémon (except that Magikarp but to be fair he was swindled out of a ton of money for that). And all of them respond really well. But it's always been a running joke that his grass type Pok**é**mon are overly affectionate—to the point of hurting him unintentionally. And just like plants respond better to people who are gentle and take care of them well I figure grass pokemon react similarly. **_

_** So I hope you enjoyed, there definitely won't be such a long wait between the next chapter and this one. Thanks for reading!**_


	5. Chapter 5

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** Hey all! This one is something that has always bugged me since the first view of "School of Hard Knocks". Without further ado please enjoy the fifth thing James doesn't talk about.**_

_**Also I own nothing you recognize. Not James (though I've got people working on that), not Jessie, not Pokemon Tech, and not the letter c.**_

_5. James did not actually fail the Pokemon Tech exam._

Throughout their partnership, James has kept few secrets from Jessie. There is one secret, however, he intends to take to the grave with him; he had actually answered almost every question on the Pokemon Technical Final Exam correctly. While he'd stayed up all night partying with Jessie, he'd already studied the material and did well on the test. But when he realized Jessie'd panicked and answered 'C' for every question, he couldn't bear to think of life in school without her. He changed his grade to reflect the same score Jessie had and ran away from the school with her.

_** So how was that guys? It always struck me as kinda weird that James has been around Pokemon his entire life (with his grandparents and Growlie and Carnevine and all that) and knows quite a lot about Pokemon (he has those pokedex cards!)and yet he still managed to fail the Pokemon Tech exam. Also it struck me as odd that he and Jessie **_SHARE**_ the record for the lowest scores in Pokemon Tech history. We've also seen insinuations here and there that James is pretty impressive with computers. So I don't know exactly how much this overlaps with canon but it's always been my headcanon that he intentionally bombed to stay with Jessie. _**

_**So if you enjoyed or hated this drop me a review to let me know : )**_


	6. Chapter 6

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** So this one deals with my biggest post "Holy Matrimony" question: "why did James leave the powerful, loyal, capable of offense (whereas Koffing/Wheezing really only got to play defense with smoke screen and smog) Growlie behind with his awful parents?" I mean, him loving the puppy aside, Team Rocket would have had a much easier time against Ash with that kind of firepower (*runs from pun police*) on their side.**_

_**I own nothing recognizable.**_

_6. James will never take Growlie in his party as long as he is with Team Rocket._

Growlie was James's first Pokemon, a birthday gift from before he can remember. Jessie's first question after leaving James's parents' estate was why James had left the powerful puppy Pokemon behind. He couldn't really give her a straight answer and made something up to get her off his case. She wouldn't understand the truth; Team Rocket is everything to her. But policy for field agents demands that every Rocket log their party as Team Rocket property and he hates the idea of being forced to turn his precious Pokemon over at the request of any higher up in the organization.

_** Until the Anime actually answers the question nothing will convince me that any Pokemon captured by a Team Rocket agent is not property of the Team Rocket organization. This might actually be canon given the corporation's goals and views on Pokemon in general as being nothing more than tools. When Jessie and James went to Unova they left all their Pokemon at the TR headquarters (with the curious exception of the MOST cover blowing talking Meowth) so I don't think the organization claiming the pokemon as property is too farfetch'd an idea. Let me know what you think!**_


	7. Chapter 7

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** Hello my friends and followers. Today I present to you the seventh thing James doesn't talk about. Enjoy!**_

_**Also if you know it, I don't own it.**_

_7. James was never able to leave home and go on his own Pokemon journey._

At first glance James, who grew up very privileged beyond compare, has no legitimate reason to resent Ash Ketchem, whose single mother struggled to make ends meet. However Ash was allowed to go on a Pokemon journey. James grew up wanting nothing more than to be a trainer. Unfortunately his parents immediately dismissed the idea as beneath him. Pokemon Technical had been their idea of a compromise; he'd study in a dignified manner. And while he doesn't regret Pokemon Tech (or running away with Jessie), he's always wondered how different things would be if he'd gone on a trainer journey.

_** This one is entirely canon. Well, not really. We do know that James's parents wanted a dignified and refined son and that he did not go on a trainer journey. I've always thought he would have liked to do the typical trainer journey though. Let me know what you thought of this one. :)**_


	8. Chapter 8

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** Hi everyone! Welcome back to 20 Things James Doesn't talk about. I'm so happy you rejoined me for this chapter. For the first time we're going to go into contests-more specifically why James didn't compete in them.**_

_8. James only stayed out of contests so Jessie could shine._

James loves just about everything about Pokemon Contests. He's always been a fan of beauty contests, and with his fashion sense and flair for dramatics he could do well on the Contest Circuit. He might have been tempted to try it too, if he hadn't seen just how much they meant to Jessie. He, more than anyone, knows Jessie's thirst for praise and success and stealing her thunder would be a cruelty he couldn't bear to inflict on her. So instead of going for his own ribbons and festival rank he pours his effort into helping his best friend win.

_** The reality is that James is really very good at competitions. I think he would have done really really well if he'd pursued contests on his own. However I don't think he would dare to take the chance that he'd be competing against Jessie and potentially stealing her thunder or ribbons she could have won. I confess that contests were never my favorite part of the anime until Jessie stopped cheating and started winning. But they seem right up James's alley—a Pokemon battle where the whole point is to look pretty.**_

_**So that's the eighth one of these. Next time we'll talk some more about James's unique relationship with his parents. Please review if you have anything to say! :)**_


	9. Chapter 9

**20 Things James Doesn't Talk About**

by Watches Foxes

_** Hey everyone! I'm glad the world didn't end so have an update.  
**_

_9. James's parents wrote him entirely out of their wills for choosing Team Rocket._

James's parents have never understood his wanderlust or his complete rejection of having a proper lady like Jessiebelle as a wife. He tried to explain that the piles of money could not buy his happiness, not in the same way his very best friends could, though the concept thoroughly baffled them. Frustrated by his attitude toward the , they offered an ultimatum: his trust fund or his teammates. He wouldn't (couldn't) ever tell Jessie or Meowth exactly how much he'd given up for them; he wasn't really sure they'd understand the choice he made much better than his parents had.

_** From their behavior and demands on James, I imagine that his parents had an arranged (presumably for monetary reasons) marriage, and from that standpoint it makes sense that they don't get why their son has so much of a problem with it. In "Holy Matrimony" James clearly took his sweet time getting back to Jessie and Meowth. Canon tells us that his parents wouldn't give him the money and from there I always figured he would never see any of it. I always thought it was kind of suspicious that his mother and father went through all that to get him there and then let him go like it was nothing. Please let me know what you think : )  
**_


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